BET Adds More Thea to Weekends; ION Upfront To Be Held May 1, Minor Schedule Change

Thursday, March 06, 2008

BET Adds More Thea to Weekends; ION Upfront To Be Held May 1, Minor Schedule Change

As you all know BET has added the short-lived 1993-94 season sitcom Thea to weekends along with short lived 1980 sitcom Sanford. Thea is airing Saturday nights at 3am and Sunday afternoons at 12pm...with Sanford as its lead-in both times (2:30am and 11:30am). Now BET has announced it will air more Thea! Effective this Saturday (March 8), BET will air Thea also Saturday mornings at 9am and 9:30am, replacing Diff'rent Strokes. This is not a big loss for Diff'rent Strokes because the Saturday airings were only repeats of Monday's airings, and Strokes will still air weekdays from 9-10am.
As for Thea, we will now get two episodes a week rather than just one. 9-10am episodes are two new episodes and they will repeat one each on Saturday night at 3am and Sunday at 12 noon. So, if you're DVRing, TiVoing, recording Thea, back-to-back 9-10am Saturday mornings is your best bet.
Don't forget also to tune in this Saturday from 10am-11pm for the Sanford marathon as we set our clocks San"forward" for the spring, as all 26 episodes of the short-lived revival series starring Redd Foxx will air, including the three-part pilot episode.

ION Media Networks, Inc. announced today that it will display its new programming and marketing initiatives for the 2008-2009 television season at its second annual Upfront sales presentation. The event, aimed at the advertising community, will be held on the evening of Thursday, May 1st at the New York Public Library.
ION Television recently announced it will be adding the hit series Boston Legal to its Fall 2008 primetime lineup. Also coming to the network will be the timeless comedic drama, M*A*S*H.
ION Television already has made some significant additions to its primetime schedule in 2008, launching the beloved sitcom, The Drew Carey Show, on New Year's Day, and debuting the multi-generational TV staple, Baywatch, earlier this week. Original movies from RHI Entertainment, such as Journey to the Center of the Earth and Aces 'N Eights, set to premiere March 15th, also have contributed to the increased excitement at the network in the first quarter of the year.
Meanwhile, due to low ratings, ION has canceled the infomercial program Firebrand TV. Firebrand took a curated approach to Madison Ave., selecting flashy spots from blue-chip advertisers ranging from Coca-Cola to 24 Hour Fitness. The show was airing weeknights at 11pm and it will be replaced with real infomercials now starting Monday (March 10). No joking.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight

Friday, July 3

The Dick Van Dyke Show - Now in Living Color! - (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
CBS will honor the memory of legendary actor, producer, director, writer, comedian and Emmy Award winner Carl Reiner with THE DICK VAN DYKE SHOW – NOW IN LIVING COLOR! A SPECIAL TRIBUTE TO CARL REINER, featuring two colorized back-to-back classic episodes of the beloved 1960s series, Friday, July 3 (8:00-9:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. As series creator and co-star, Carl Reiner personally supervised the original colorization of the episodes.

The special features “Coast to Coast Big Mouth,” which ranked #8 on TV Guide’s list of the “100 Greatest TV Episodes of All-Time,” and “October Eve,” which Mr. Reiner considered to be one of the series’ funniest episodes. Both were written by Bill Persky and Sam Denoff.

In “Coast to Coast Big Mouth,” Laura Petrie blurts out a top secret on a national television quiz show, revealing that comedian Alan Brady wears a toupee. The episode, which was the show’s fifth and final season premiere, was originally broadcast on Sept. 15, 1965. “Coast to Coast Big Mouth” won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series in 1966.

In “October Eve,” a painting of Laura returns to haunt her when, despite her having posed fully clothed, the artist (played by Carl Reiner) takes the liberty of “undraping” her. The episode was first presented on April 8, 1964, during season three.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of June 29)

Friday, July 3

Kevin Hart (The Big House/Undeclared) - Watch Kevin on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 12:35am on ABC.
Tina Fey (30 Rock) - Tina appears on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Laura Dern (Enlightened) - Laura is a guest on a repeat of The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
Mark Duplass (Togetherness/The Mindy Project/The League) - Mark appears on a repeat of The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
Melissa McCarthy (Mike & Molly/Samantha Who?) - Melissa guest hosts a repeat of The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
Brett Gelman (Camping/Fleabag/Love/Married/Go On) - Brett appears on a repeat of A Little Late with Lilly Singh at 1:35am on NBC.
Tika Sumpter (mixed-ish/The Game) - Tika talks about the season finale of mixed-ish and her latest project helping new moms on a repeat of Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.
Peter Gallagher (Grace and Frankie/The Secret Lives of Men) - Peter talks about Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist and Grace and Frankie on a repeat of Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.